Eyewitness Identification

Why are many criminal convictions still made based solely on the discredited practice of eyewitness identification?

In this episode of The System, we explore how the American criminal justice system is grappling with emerging insights into eyewitness science.

In Dallas, a man is convicted of capital murder and sentenced to life in prison. The prosecutors relied on eyewitness testimony to convict him.

In New Orleans, another man sits in prison convicted of murdering his best friend during a botched armed robbery in 1985. There was no physical evidence tying the suspect to the scene, but two eyewitnesses picked the suspect out of a six-pack photo lineup - a practice that has now been discredited.